Surveillance cameras are currently used in many different applications, for monitoring environments both indoors and outdoors. Cameras may e.g. be used for monitoring areas where there is a high risk of unwelcome activities such as burglary or vandalism. In such situations there is also a risk that the camera itself may be exposed to sabotage or tampering actions aimed to stop the camera from monitoring the area. Some examples of such actions are spraying paint on the camera lens, covering the camera view by a cloth or kicking or hitting the camera. When the view of a camera is obstructed or the camera is damaged, the images that are produced by the camera, if any, are obviously of limited use for surveillance purposes, and, thus, the unwelcome activities may go on unnoticed by an operator receiving images from the camera. Maintenance personnel will also need to visit the camera to remove the obstruction, repair the camera or even replace it.
Several solutions to resolve the tampering issue have been suggested, such as mounting the camera in a hard to reach spot e.g. in a high ceiling. However, there is still room for improvement in this area.
US 2011/0103786 A1 discloses a privacy ensuring camera enclosure which is configured to dynamically change from the camera enclosing configuration to the surveillance configuration in response to a heightened threat level.
DE 202 19 004 U1 discloses a camera device for a motor vehicle or for a trailer connected to a motor vehicle. The camera device is placed in a housing with a cover piece for the camera lens. The cover piece is movable from a first position covering the lens to a second position not covering the lens. The housing with the cover piece protects the camera lens from rain and damage.